Recently one of the top private schools in the UK has released their textbooks online as a free downloadable ebook, which has made many students and schools very happy. Things like this are likely to be one of the best pieces of news for schools around the world.

One of the biggest impediments to improving schools is the costs, of which textbooks are a massive contributor. With the typical textbook costing anywhere from £10-30 (with the better ones being more expensive ), when you multiply that by a 8.3 million students which are currently in school in the UK, then you’re talking about tens of millions every year being spent on textbooks.

Even though we’ve had this good news courtesy of the Stephen Perse Foundation in Cambridge, most textbooks in the UK and around the world are still bought as hard copies. There are a number of options for free books, but due to the common practice of school administrations as well as the poor quality of most of them (or how they don’t match certain syllabi), most don’t use them. Most believe it is only a matter of time though.

Technology has been a part of the curriculum in one form or another since PC’s were first invented and began to be introduced in schools, but recently we’ve a lot more computer technology being developed which is highly user friendly. This makes it ideal for introduction in schools.

Already we are beginning to see the introduction of e-readers like the Ipad and kindle into our schools. These can potentially be used by schools for instantaneous sharing of information and for managing the books which students currently have to carry around with them. The internet is another potential big game changer, giving schools and pupils the potential to communicate outside of school about work for school. Both of these could come to have a massive influence over how our education system operates.

Although everyone can clearly see the slow changes which are occurring and are likely to continue to change things, there are other technological advancements which we don’t yet know about which could have an even larger impact in the years to come.

Teaching placement is a crucial part of a teachers education and the final induction into a career in teaching. It is the last stage before you become a qualified teacher, so being as prepared as possible is very important.

There are a number of things you can do to make your first few days go more smoothly and it mostly comes down to getting in the right mindset. For instance, if you’re often uncomfortable in new environments, visiting the school early so that you can familiarise yourself and perhaps introduce yourself to some of your new colleagues. It could also be helpful to ask for some advice from other teachers there on how to handle some of the students and other responsibilities in your new role. Thankfully, the school should be helpful in this regard.

The other thing that schools should be helping you with prior to you starting is with information on how the school is run; its education and administrative practices. Reading as much as you about this will help you to manage the new responsibilities.

Teaching is a highly popular career and we’re confident we can help you get off to the best possible start with a selection of cover letter writing tips. Most new teachers know how important it is to perfect the CV but without putting the same amount of effort into the cover letter, you could run into a few problems when you begin a job hunt.

Here are a few tips to ensure your cover letter is as good as it can be:

Think like the employer – If you were employing a teacher, what would you want to know about the individual? If you can put yourself in the shoes of the school, you may find that the letter is actually easy to write.

Don’t Repeat your CV. When you’re writing your letter, make sure you provide more valuable information, rather than just simply repeating facts on your CV. The cover letter can tell them a little bit more about you, whereas the CV should just contain facts like qualifications, references, skills and experience.

Never Use Templates. No two cover letters should be the same, and you should make sure they’re tailored for a specific school or institution. Every job role will have its own brief and you should touch on these points, proving you’re capable, not just submitting a template email to numerous schools.